Mana Moana
A Call to Kainga, by Dr Karlo Mila and Michael Bridgman 2019 – projected on the water screen at Whairepo Lagoon in 2019
Mana Moana 2020 brings together Māori and Pacific visual artists, poets, musicians and choreographers from across Aotearoa to weave art and technology together. The result is 45 minutes of new multimedia and video artworks which speak to our relationships with water and the oceans and the need for collective action to ensure their survival. This is art of our place in the world and of this time. Art that explores issues and will connect with audiences.
The Mana Moana experience is brought to life by the award-winning Wellington production company Storybox. The specialist team of designers and technicians have worked alongside the artist collective and curators throughout the process and are thrilled to see Mana Moana back on the water in Te Whanganui-a-Tara as a live public event on the specially engineered water screen.
New moving image artworks by more than 15 leading New Zealand artists will be projected on a large water screen at Whairepo Lagoon over four nights from Thursday 19 to Sunday 22 November between 8.30pm to 10pm each night.
Co-curated by Rachael Rakena (Ngāi Tahu, Ngā Puhi) and Mike Bridgman (Tonga, Ngāti Pākeha) from Massey University’s College of Creative Arts, the Mana Moana 2020 collection features Laughton Kora, Horomona Horo, Regan Balzer, Tina Ngata, Terri Ripeka Crawford, Warren Maxwell, Dr Johnson Witehira, Michel Tuffery, Kurt Komene, Kura Puke, Stuart Foster, Hinemoa Waikerepuru, Kereama Taepa, Dr Karlo Mila, Louise Pōtiki Bryant. The curators reached out to multimedia creatives and artists to produce new work that pushes the boundaries of the medium while also staying true to the kaupapa of the project.
The 2020 collection takes off where Mana Moana 2019 left off, but with many works this year having a strong theme of wellbeing, balance and healing. Some of the artists brought these themes to their work as a response to the anxieties of 2020 and the global pandemic.
Still from I am Hine, I am Moana by Terri Ripeka Crawford (Ngāti Porou, Ngāti Kahungunu, Ngai Tūhoe) and Tina Ngata (Ngāti Porou), 2020
“Mana Moana 2020’s kaupapa became a creative collaboration under COVID-19 lockdown conditions, with a strong theme emerging of healing. The power of water and the ocean to heal, and the urgent need for us to turn the tide to create a healing impact for our environment, towards upholding the mana of our moana. There is so much healing in the experience of gathering and connecting. We are thrilled to present this mahi on the waterfront in November as it touches water in our physical environment.”
— Rachael Rakena
Still from Tūātea by Louise Potiki Bryant (Ngāi Tahu) 2020, featuring dancer Bianca Hyslop
Still from Rukuia by Dr Johnson Witehira and Warren Maxwell, 2020
Mana Moana was launched as a ‘digital ocean’ earlier in the year in response to COVID-19 lockdown, which meant people worldwide could access the artworks online as an immersive digital experience. The seven artworks being projected onto a screen of water in November were commissioned earlier this year for Mana Moana Digital Ocean which is nominated for two Best Design Awards in 2020.
Still from Mana Moana Meditation by Dr Karlo Mila (Tongan, Pākeha) and Michael Tuffery (Samoan, Rarotongan, Ma‘ohi Tahitian), 2020
Among the seven new artworks in the Mana Moana 2020 screening between 19-22 November, are two dance video works by leading choreographers which will have a powerful presence projected large on the water screen. Tūātea, by Louise Potiki Bryant (Ngāi Tahu) featuring dancer Bianca Hyslop, music by Paddy Free and taonga pūoro by Horomona Horo (Ngā Puhi, Ngāti Porou, Taranaki), is a work that explores the power of the huge breaking waves of an oceanic storm and the profound calm at the lowest depths of the ocean. I am Hine, I am Moana, by choreographer Terri Ripeka Crawford (Ngāti Porou, Ngāti Kahungunu, Ngai Tūhoe) collaborating with artist and writer Tina Ngata (Ngāti Porou) who is an advocate for environmental and indigenous rights. This work delves into the omnipotence of Hine, the ageless, divine, feminine principle that flows directly from the universe, manifesting through all wahine in various roles and stages of life.
The inaugural Mana Moana 2019 water screen project won a Gold at the Best Design Awards last year and has gained international attention being screened at the 2020 Nuit Blanche Festival in Toronto, Canada.
Mana Moana is made possible by support from Creative New Zealand, Wellington City Council and Massey University's Toi Rauwhārangi College of Creative Arts.
About MANA MOANA
Mana Moana, curated and conceived by Rachael Rakena and Mike Bridgman and produced by arts production company Storybox, brings together leading interdisciplinary Māori and Pacific artists to collaborate on multimedia and moving image artworks exploring our relationships with the ocean, climate change and highlights indigenous knowledge and stories. The inaugural Mana Moana project in 2019 presented five audio-visual works on a water screen at Whairepo Lagoon in Wellington as part of Matariki celebrations, and received a Gold at the 2019 BEST Design Awards . The 2019 collection was selected for the Nuit Blanche Toronto international art festival in Canada. In 2020, Mana Moana Digital Ocean was created in response to the COVID-19 lockdown. The web-based immersive experience has been nominated for two Best Design Awards in 2020.
About STORYBOX
Established in 2010 Storybox is a Wellington based award-winning arts and media production company that specialises in finding innovative ways to connect with audiences. They have produced a wide range of projects both nationally and internationally and believe in the power of integrity and art to make our future a better place to be